Traditional Palestinian embroidery can be said to have six regional centers: Ramallah, Bethlehem, Jaffa, Hebron, Gaza and the Southern Plains. The embroidery of each region possessed distinctive qualities. Jaffa embroidery was famous for its delicate craftsmanship; Gaza, for its sparse decoration on striped cotton; Bethlehem, for its silver and gold couching.

Aisha, 63, remembers: « If a woman came from Gaza to the West Bank it would be obvious right away that she was from Gaza, because of the color and design of her thoub. ».

Over time, such fiercely unique regional - even village - styles evolved into a more general style which helped to define Palestinian culture as its own entity. To experience a "taste" of Palestinian regional styles as they once existed, choose one of the following: